Lawmakers weigh in with support for Migden

News today that state Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco, has been battling leukemia for the past decade caught many lawmakers by surprise.

In an interview with The Chronicle, the 56-year-old lawmaker publicly disclosed for the first time that she was diagnosed with the illness in 1997 and given a life expectancy of three to five years.

Migden’s disclosure comes after Friday’s auto accident that slightly injured the driver of another car in Fairfield. Immediately after the accident, her office said she was reaching for her cell phone when she rear-ended car near Fairfield. Today, she told The Chronicle that she doesn’t remember parts of drive leading up to the accident.

Migden has alienated some lawmakers over the years, but many legislative colleagues rallied around her, saying they would have never known she was battling leukemia for so long.

Sen. Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento: “I can’t imagine what she’s gone through in the last 10 years, not only dealing with her medical condition, but keeping her privacy in her public role. … Carole is a fighter. She is going to get through all of this.”

Sen. Shiela Kuehl, D-Santa Monica: “I think we were all surprised and frankly part of the reason for the surprise is that Carole has been one of the most effective legislators that I’ve worked with.”

Sen. Tom Torlakson, D-Antioch: “She’s amazing. None of us would have guessed that she had this major struggle going on against this very terrible disease.”

Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, D-San Francisco: “I respect the choice that she first made to deal with this privately and the choice that she made today to disclose her illness … I think a person’s medical condition is subject to their own privacy if it doesn’t affect their day-to-day job.”